Dancing with the Stars (American season 26)
Season twenty-six of Dancing with the Stars, titled Dancing with the Stars: Athletes, premiered on April 30, 2018, on the ABC network. The four-week season, the shortest ever, features a cast of current and former athletes.[1] This is the first season where more than one couple is eliminated each week.
| Dancing with the Stars | |
|---|---|
| Season 26 | |
| Celebrity winner | Adam Rippon |
| Professional winner | Jenna Johnson |
| Country of origin | United States |
| No. of episodes | 4 |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Original release | April 30 – May 21, 2018 |
| Season chronology | |
On May 21, 2018, Olympic figure skater Adam Rippon and Jenna Johnson were announced the winners, marking the first win for Johnson. Rippon is the first openly gay winner. NFL player Josh Norman, with Sharna Burgess, and former Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding, with Sasha Farber, were both announced as runners-up during the live finale show. However, it was revealed later that Josh and Sharna placed second, while Tonya and Sasha placed third.[2]
Cast
Couples
The professional dancers were announced on April 12, 2018.[3] The eight professionals returning from last season are Lindsay Arnold, Alan Bersten, Sharna Burgess, Witney Carson, Artem Chigvintsev, Keo Motsepe, Gleb Savchenko, and Emma Slater. The two remaining professional dancers were both in the troupe last season, and have previously been professional dancers on the show: Sasha Farber (last competed in season 24) and Jenna Johnson (last competed in season 23). The five professionals from last season that are not returning are Cheryl Burke, Mark Ballas, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, Peta Murgatroyd, and Valentin Chmerkovskiy.
The cast was announced on April 13 on Good Morning America.[4]
| Celebrity | Notability (known for) | Professional partner | Status | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jamie Anderson | Olympic snowboarder | Artem Chigvintsev | Eliminated 1st on April 30, 2018 |
[5] |
| Johnny Damon | Former MLB outfielder | Emma Slater | ||
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | Former NBA center | Lindsay Arnold | Eliminated 3rd on May 7, 2018 |
[6] |
| Arike Ogunbowale | Notre Dame women's basketball player | Gleb Savchenko | ||
| Jennie Finch Daigle | Former Olympic softball pitcher | Keo Motsepe | Eliminated 5th on May 14, 2018 |
[7] |
| Chris Mazdzer | Olympic luger | Witney Carson | ||
| Mirai Nagasu | Olympic figure skater | Alan Bersten | ||
| Tonya Harding | Former Olympic figure skater | Sasha Farber | Third place on May 21, 2018 |
[8] |
| Josh Norman | NFL cornerback | Sharna Burgess | Runner-up on May 21, 2018 | |
| Adam Rippon | Olympic figure skater | Jenna Johnson | Winner on May 21, 2018 |
Hosts and judges
Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews returned as hosts, while Carrie Ann Inaba, Len Goodman, and Bruno Tonioli returned as judges.[9] On May 7, season 24 champion Rashad Jennings returned as a guest judge.[6] On May 14, season 24 runner-up David Ross returned as a guest judge.[7]
Dance troupe
The dance troupe for season 26 consists of season 25 troupe members Artur Adamski, Brandon Armstrong, Hayley Erbert, and Britt Stewart. Additionally, professional dancer Morgan Larson, who performed on the Dancing with the Stars: Light Up the Night tour, joined the troupe for season 26.
Scoring charts
| Couple | Place | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adam & Jenna | 1 | 24 | 37+37=74 | 39+2=41 | 30+28=58 |
| Josh & Sharna | 2 | 24 | 30+33=63 | 36+2=38 | 27+30=57 |
| Tonya & Sasha | 3 | 23 | 33+33=66 | 33+2=35 | 26+30=56 |
| Jennie & Keo | 4 | 21 | 26+37=63 | 29 | |
| Chris & Witney | 21 | 33+33=66 | 33 | ||
| Mirai & Alan | 23 | 37+37=74 | 35 | ||
| Kareem & Lindsay | 7 | 17 | 26+33=59 | ||
| Arike & Gleb | 20 | 33+37=70 | |||
| Jamie & Artem | 9 | 19 | |||
| Johnny & Emma | 18 | ||||
- Red numbers Indicates the lowest score for each week.
- Green numbers Indicates the highest score for each week.
- The returning couple that was the last to be called safe.
- The couple was eliminated that week.
- The winning couple.
- the runner-up couple
- the third place couple
Average chart
This table only counts dances scored on a 30-point scale (scores by guest judges and points awarded in the dance-offs are excluded).
| Rank by average |
Place | Couple | Total points |
Number of dances |
Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Adam & Jenna | 166 | 6 | 27.7 |
| 2 | 2 | Josh & Sharna | 155 | 25.8 | |
| 4 | Mirai & Alan | 102 | 4 | ||
| 4 | 3 | Tonya & Sasha | 151 | 6 | 25.2 |
| 5 | 7 | Arike & Gleb | 71 | 3 | 23.7 |
| 6 | 4 | Chris & Witney | 94 | 4 | 23.5 |
| 7 | Jennie & Keo | 88 | 22.0 | ||
| 8 | 7 | Kareem & Lindsay | 60 | 3 | 20.0 |
| 9 | 9 | Jamie & Artem | 19 | 1 | 19.0 |
| 10 | Johnny & Emma | 18 | 18.0 |
Highest and lowest scoring performances
The best and worst performances in each dance according to the judges' 30-point scale (scores by guest judges are excluded) are as follows:
| Dance | Highest scored dancer(s) | Highest score | Lowest scored dancer(s) | Lowest score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salsa | Mirai Nagasu | 23 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 19 |
| Cha-cha-cha | Adam Rippon Josh Norman | 24 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 17 |
| Foxtrot | Mirai Nagasu Josh Norman | 27 | Johnny Damon | 18 |
| Viennese waltz | Tonya Harding | 26 | Jamie Anderson | 19 |
| Paso doble | Josh Norman | 23 | — | — |
| Quickstep | Adam Rippon | 28 | Tonya Harding | 24 |
| Team dances | Jennie Finch Daigle Mirai Nagasu Arike Ogunbowale Adam Rippon | 27 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Tonya Harding Chris Mazdzer Josh Norman | 24 |
| Rumba | Tonya Harding | 24 | — | — |
| Contemporary | Adam Rippon | 29 | Josh Norman | 27 |
| Jazz | Adam Rippon | 30 | — | — |
| Freestyle | Tonya Harding Josh Norman | 30 | Adam Rippon | 28 |
Couples' highest and lowest scoring dances
Scores are based upon a potential 30-point maximum (team dances and scores by guest judges are excluded).
| Couple | Highest scoring dance(s) | Lowest scoring dance(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Adam & Jenna | Jazz (30) | Cha-cha-cha (24) |
| Josh & Sharna | Freestyle (30) | Paso doble (23) |
| Tonya & Sasha | Freestyle (30) | Foxtrot (23) |
| Jennie & Keo | Foxtrot & Viennese waltz (21) | Cha-cha-cha (19) |
| Chris & Witney | Viennese waltz (25) | Salsa (21) |
| Mirai & Alan | Foxtrot (27) | Salsa (23) |
| Kareem & Lindsay | Salsa (19) | Cha-cha-cha (17) |
| Arike & Gleb | Foxtrot (24) | Salsa (20) |
| Jamie & Artem | Viennese waltz (19) | — |
| Johnny & Emma | Foxtrot (18) | — |
Weekly scores
Individual judges' scores in the charts below (given in parentheses) are listed in this order from left to right: Carrie Ann Inaba, Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli.
Week 1: First Dances
The couples danced the cha-cha-cha, foxtrot, salsa or Viennese waltz.
For the first time in the show's history, viewers were able to vote for the couples live online so that the results of the vote could be used to determine the first two eliminees that same evening.
- Running order
| Couple | Scores[5] | Dance | Music[10] | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris & Witney | 21 (7, 7, 7) | Salsa | "Mr. Put It Down"—Ricky Martin feat. Pitbull | Safe |
| Kareem & Lindsay | 17 (6, 5, 6) | Cha-cha-cha | "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours"—Stevie Wonder | Safe |
| Jennie & Keo | 21 (7, 7, 7) | Foxtrot | "All-American Girl"—Carrie Underwood | Safe |
| Jamie & Artem | 19 (6, 7, 6) | Viennese waltz | "Feeling Good"—Avicii feat. Audra Mae | Eliminated |
| Mirai & Alan | 23 (7, 8, 8) | Salsa | "No Excuses"—Meghan Trainor | Safe |
| Arike & Gleb | 20 (7, 6, 7) | Salsa | "Them Girls"—Whitney Myer | Safe |
| Adam & Jenna | 24 (8, 8, 8) | Cha-cha-cha | "Sissy That Walk"—RuPaul | Safe |
| Johnny & Emma | 18 (6, 6, 6) | Foxtrot | "Centerfield"—John Fogerty | Eliminated |
| Tonya & Sasha | 23 (8, 8, 7) | Foxtrot | "When You Believe"—Whitney Houston & Mariah Carey | Last to be called safe |
| Josh & Sharna | 24 (8, 8, 8) | Cha-cha-cha | "Finesse"—Bruno Mars | Safe |
Week 2: Team Dance Week
Individual judges' scores in the charts below (given in parentheses) are listed in this order from left to right: Carrie Ann Inaba, Rashad Jennings, Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli.
The couples performed one unlearned dance and a team dance celebrating an iconic decade in sports. Paso doble and quickstep are introduced.
- Running order
| Couple | Scores[6] | Dance | Music[11] | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josh & Sharna | 30 (7, 7, 8, 8) | Paso doble | "The Plaza of Execution"—James Horner | Safe |
| Jennie & Keo | 26 (6, 7, 7, 6) | Cha-cha-cha | "Do It Like This"—Daphne Willis | Safe |
| Kareem & Lindsay | 26 (7, 7, 6, 6) | Salsa | "La Malanga"—Eddie Palmieri | Eliminated |
| Chris & Witney | 33 (9, 8, 8, 8) | Viennese waltz | "Next to Me"—Imagine Dragons | Last to be called safe |
| Tonya & Sasha | 33 (8, 9, 8, 8) | Quickstep | "Redneck Woman"—Gretchen Wilson | Safe |
| Mirai & Alan | 37 (9, 10, 9, 9) | Foxtrot | "It's a Small World"—The O'Neill Brothers | Safe |
| Arike & Gleb | 33 (8, 9, 8, 8) | Foxtrot | "What About Us"—Pink | Eliminated |
| Adam & Jenna | 37 (9, 9, 9, 10) | Quickstep | "Make Way"—Aloe Blacc | Safe |
| Chris & Witney Josh & Sharna Kareem & Lindsay Tonya & Sasha |
33 (8, 9, 8, 8) | Freestyle (Team 1950s Tennis) |
"...Baby One More Time"—The Baseballs | |
| Adam & Jenna Arike & Gleb Jennie & Keo Mirai & Alan |
37 (9, 10, 9, 9) | Freestyle (Team 1970s Football) |
"Instant Replay"—Dan Hartman | |
Week 3: MVP Night (Semifinals)
Individual judges' scores in the charts below (given in parentheses) are listed in this order from left to right: Carrie Ann Inaba, David Ross, Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli.
The couples performed one unlearned dance dedicated to the "MVP" in their lives, and participated in "ballroom battle" dance-offs for extra points. Former contestants were brought in to mentor the couples for the ballroom battles. Nastia Liukin mentored Jennie & Keo and Tonya & Sasha. Meryl Davis, season 18 champion, mentored Adam & Jenna and Mirai & Alan. Von Miller mentored Chris & Witney and Josh & Sharna. Contemporary, jive and rumba are introduced.
- Running order
| Couple | Scores[7] | Dance | Music[12] | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mirai & Alan | 35 (9, 9, 8, 9) | Quickstep | "BO$"—Fifth Harmony | Eliminated |
| Jennie & Keo | 29 (7, 8, 7, 7) | Viennese waltz | "The Rest of Our Life"—Tim McGraw & Faith Hill | |
| Chris & Witney | 33 (8, 9, 7, 9) | Foxtrot | "I Got Rhythm"—Ray Chew | |
| Tonya & Sasha | 33 (8, 9, 8, 8) | Rumba | "See You Again"—Tyler Ward | Safe |
| Adam & Jenna | 39 (10, 10, 9, 10) | Contemporary | "O"—Coldplay | Safe |
| Josh & Sharna | 36 (9, 9, 9, 9) | Contemporary | "Stand by Me"—Bootstraps | Last to be called safe |
| Couple | Judges' votes | Public vote | Dance | Music | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tonya & Sasha | Tonya, Jennie, Tonya, Tonya | Jennie (60%) | Cha-cha-cha | "Dance"—DNCE | Winner (2 pts) |
| Jennie & Keo | Loser | ||||
| Adam & Jenna | Adam, Mirai, Mirai, Adam | Adam (64%) | Jive | "Johnny B. Goode"—Chuck Berry | Winner (2 pts) |
| Mirai & Alan | Loser | ||||
| Josh & Sharna | Chris, Josh, Josh, Josh | Chris (55%) | Salsa | "WTF (Where They From)"—Missy Elliott feat. Pharrell Williams | Winner (2 pts) |
| Chris & Witney | Loser |
Week 4: Finals
The final three couples performed one unlearned dance inspired by their journey on the show and a freestyle. Jazz is introduced.
- Running order
| Couple | Scores[8] | Dance | Music[13] | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tonya & Sasha | 26 (8, 9, 9) | Viennese waltz | "The Time of My Life"—David Cook | Third Place[2] |
| 30 (10, 10, 10) | Freestyle | "I Will Survive "— The Pussycat Dolls | ||
| Josh & Sharna | 27 (9, 9, 9) | Foxtrot | "Conqueror"—Empire cast feat. Estelle & Jussie Smollett | Runner-Up[2] |
| 30 (10, 10, 10) | Freestyle | "Walk on Water"—Thirty Seconds to Mars | ||
| Adam & Jenna | 30 (10, 10, 10) | Jazz | "Anything You Can Do"—Bernadette Peters & Tom Wopat | Winners |
| 28 (9, 9, 10) | Freestyle | "Scooby Doo Pa Pa"—DJ Kass |
Dance chart
The celebrities and professional partners danced one of these routines for each corresponding week:
- Week 1: Cha-cha-cha, foxtrot, salsa, or Viennese waltz (First Dances)
- Week 2: One unlearned dance and team dances
- Week 3: One unlearned dance and ballroom battles (MVP Night; Semifinals)
- Week 4: One unlearned dance and freestyle (Finals)
| Couple | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adam & Jenna | Cha-cha-cha | Quickstep | Freestyle (Team 1970s Football) |
Contemporary | Jive | Jazz | Freestyle |
| Josh & Sharna | Cha-cha-cha | Paso doble | Freestyle (Team 1950s Tennis) |
Contemporary | Salsa | Foxtrot | Freestyle |
| Tonya & Sasha | Foxtrot | Quickstep | Freestyle (Team 1950s Tennis) |
Rumba | Cha-cha-cha | Viennese waltz | Freestyle |
| Jennie & Keo | Foxtrot | Cha-cha-cha | Freestyle (Team 1970s Football) |
Viennese waltz | Cha-cha-cha | ||
| Chris & Witney | Salsa | Viennese waltz | Freestyle (Team 1950s Tennis) |
Foxtrot | Salsa | ||
| Mirai & Alan | Salsa | Foxtrot | Freestyle (Team 1970s Football) |
Quickstep | Jive | ||
| Kareem & Lindsay | Cha-cha-cha | Salsa | Freestyle (Team 1950s Tennis) |
||||
| Arike & Gleb | Salsa | Foxtrot | Freestyle (Team 1970s Football) |
||||
| Jamie & Artem | Viennese waltz | ||||||
| Johnny & Emma | Foxtrot | ||||||
- Highest scoring dance
- Lowest scoring dance
- Gained bonus points for winning this dance-off
- Gained no bonus points for losing this dance-off
Ratings
| No. | Title | Air date | Rating/share (18–49) | Viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Week 1: Premiere" | April 30, 2018 | 1.1/5 | 8.48[14] |
| 2 | "Week 2" | May 7, 2018 | 1.0/4 | 7.73[15] |
| 3 | "Week 3: MVP Night (Semifinals)" | May 14, 2018 | 1.0/4 | 7.68[16] |
| 4 | "Week 4: The Finals" | May 21, 2018 | 1.1/5 | 8.77[17] |
References
- Schwartz, Ryan (April 13, 2018). "Dancing With the Stars: Athletes Cast Includes Tonya Harding, Adam Rippon, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and More". TVLine. Archived from the original on April 14, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- "'DWTS' Reveals Official Runner-Up -- Did Tonya Harding or Josh Norman Place Second?". Entertainment Tonight. Archived from the original on 2018-05-23. Retrieved 2018-05-23.
- Murphy, Desiree (April 12, 2018). "Dancing With the Stars pros revealed for all-athlete season". Entertainment Tonight. Archived from the original on April 12, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- Thorbecke, Catherine (April 13, 2018). "Adam Rippon, Tonya Harding and more superstar athletes to face-off in Dancing With the Stars season 26". ABC News. Archived from the original on April 13, 2018. Retrieved April 13, 2018.
- Kubicek, John (April 30, 2018). "'Dancing with the Stars: Athletes' Premiere Recap: The First Dances and Eliminations". BuddyTV. Archived from the original on May 1, 2018. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
- Iannucci, Rebecca (May 7, 2018). "Dancing With the Stars Week 2 Recap: Did the Right Athletes Go Home?". TVLine. Archived from the original on May 15, 2018. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
- Iannucci, Rebecca (May 14, 2018). "Dancing With the Stars Week 3 Recap: Are the Right Athletes In the Finale?". TVLine. Archived from the original on May 15, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
- Montgomery, Daniel (May 21, 2018). "Dancing with the Stars: Athletes' finale recap: Who won the Mirror Ball Trophy?". GoldDerby. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
- "About Dancing with the Stars". abc.go.com. Archived from the original on March 16, 2018. Retrieved March 1, 2018.
- "10 Driven Athletes Will Go Toe-to-Toe for the Mirrorball Trophy on Season Premiere of ABC's DANCING WITH THE STARS". BroadwayWorld. April 24, 2018. Archived from the original on April 25, 2018. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
- "Scoop: Coming Up on DANCING WITH THE STARS: ATHLETES on ABC - Monday, May 7". BroadwayWorld.com. May 7, 2018. Archived from the original on May 4, 2018. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
- "Scoop: Six Remaining Athletes Prepare for Yet Another Double-Header as They Get Set to Perform on DANCING WITH THE STARS: ATHLETES 5/14". BroadwayWorld.com. May 9, 2018. Archived from the original on May 10, 2018. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
- "Scoop: Coming Up on DANCING WITH THE STARS: ATHELETES [sic] on ABC - Monday, May 21". BroadwayWorld.com. May 16, 2018. Archived from the original on May 17, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
- Porter, Rick (May 1, 2018). "'The Voice' adjusts up: Monday final ratings". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 2, 2018. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
- Porter, Rick (May 8, 2018). "'The Voice,' 'Supergirl,' 'Man with a Plan' adjust up, 'The Resident' adjusts down: Monday final ratings". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 9, 2018. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
- Porter, Rick (May 15, 2018). "'Man with a Plan' adjusts up: Monday final ratings". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 16, 2018. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
- Porter, Rick (May 22, 2018). "'Supergirl' and 'iZombie' adjust down: Monday final ratings". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on May 23, 2018. Retrieved May 22, 2018.